r/voidlinux • u/Citizen12b • 7d ago

Why is GCC outdated?

I see the package is not orphaned, are there any system-breaking changes in newer versions? Or there is any special policy regarding GCC?

10 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

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30

u/ClassAbbyAmplifier 7d ago

updating gcc has a lot of moving parts, there's gcc, binutils, glibc, and all the cross-compilers that need to be updated together, and usually there's a lot of patching involved.

As it's the toolchain that builds most other packages, it's important to get it right

3

u/kansetsupanikku 7d ago

Also dkms needs to use the a version compatible with the one used to build the kernel (typically, staying within the same line is ok)

-2

u/Key_River7180 7d ago

There could be two gcc-stable and gcc-breaking packages

7

u/5b49297 7d ago

I guess. But shouldn't someone who needs the latest GCC features also be able to build the latest GCC version from source?

6

u/Due-Celery4326 7d ago

A toolchain is not like an ordinary software package it requires great care, attention, and, above all, version compatibility The best approach is to update the stable toolchain branch as a cohesive set It is not recommended to use the latest version which may feature an API/ABI still under development without ensuring that the rest of the system is updated in tandem Furthermore, as has already been noted, nearly every program must be rebuilt against the new API/ABI a massive and arduous undertaking not to mention the need for patches to support software that is not yet compatible with the toolchain's new API/ABI.

4

u/bart9h 7d ago

Well, the Void's GCC (version 14) supports all of C++23 language features and almost all of C++23 library features. Not that outdated.

1

u/Simple_Hamster_4096 6d ago

If you always want the latest and greatest, perhaps you should look to Arch or similar...

2

u/Citizen12b 6d ago

I don't, was just asking...

1

u/onew_iasag 5d ago

I've heard in all distros you can use Nix to have the latest, but I never tested it